Bridging the gender gap in STEM
A groundbreaking collaboration between Toorak College and Deakin University is encouraging female participation in STEM and providing women with real industry experience and new career pathways
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A RECENT government survey reported that over 80% of women in Australia identified the lack of female role models as a key barrier to gender equality in STEM. The Frontiers in Psychology survey, titled Girls in STEM: Is It a Female Role-Model Thing?, found that having female role models is central to increasing retention of girls in STEM as it gives them a strong message that women can lead in STEM careers in diverse and meaningful ways.
Recognising the potential of this to drive greater female engagement in this important field, some schools and universities have joined forces and opened exciting new doors for girls who are interested in learning more about the importance of this industry with regard to their own lives, both as school students and when they eventually enter the workforce.
Rising to the challenge
The Deakin School of IT has long been working on ways to engage
The group’s workshops on robotics and algorithmic problem-solving soon piqued the interest of Toorak College, whose principal, Kristy Kendall, had been looking for ways to expand on the school’s cutting-edge STEM offerings for girls.
After some discussion, Deakin’s School of IT and Toorak College proposed a partnership to target the Year 10 cohort, a critical stage in schooling when female students may disengage with STEM. Before long, the IlluminatED project was born.
‘Doing what is right, not what is easy’
Toorak College is a school that has long understood the importance of inspiring its students to enter STEM fields and the opportunities this provides. With the aim of transforming its approach to STEM education, the college has, in recent years, been upskilling its girls in STEM education and digital technology, from Early Learning through to Year 12.
“At Toorak College we are committed to doing what is right, not what is easy,” Kendall tells The Educator. “Today, it is right for us to think differently about the role schools play in empowering our students to leap into opportunities that will strengthen their future.”
A bright future ahead
Lee and the team at the Deakin School of IT say their vision for the future is to see increased female participation in STEM-related areas, particularly at the leadership level.
“Gender-inclusive representation in this area will have a strong economic, social and cultural impact. Also, having more female leaders will foster innovation and improvement by bringing new and wider perspectives to the table,” they tell The Educator.
“In order to increase engagement of girls in tertiary studies in STEM, we recommend having a strong and diverse presence of female role models who are passionate about STEM and an innovative and inclusive curriculum that provides motivation and purpose alongside the traditional STEM skills.”
Lee and the team note that it is also important to engage women in the design and creation of learning materials and experiences so that the female perspective and motivators are included, and potential barriers are addressed.
Collaboration will make the difference
Kendall says now is the time to think differently about how to engage girls and young women in the industry that will no doubt drive the jobs of the future.
“We need to connect schools and industry and to not expect students to follow a long and traditional path from school to study and then on to the world of work. There are projects now that students can involve themselves in: coding solutions to real-world problems, providing input to design thinking solutions, and much more,” she says.
“It’s a different employment market out there, and industry is desperate to attract the best female talent. Why not connect with them now and create those meaningful relationships that will strengthen both students’ understanding and experience and the company’s talent pool as well.”
To this end, the college invested in a new building intentionally designed to make every student “run towards a future in STEM” and had already been offering a broad range of science and technology programs for all students from ELC through to Year 9.
It was the senior years, however, that the college really wanted to engage in a different way, outside of their VCE curriculum. Given that students’ subject choices are influenced by many factors, the college wanted to offer something that everyone could participate in regardless of their VCE program.
“We knew the way to do that was to find relevance and connection to the world beyond our gates, and that is when our partnership with Deakin University first came to life,” Kendall says.
Toorak College has seen, on average, 30–40% of its Year 12 graduating class pursue studies in STEM-related fields. Kendall says this result is driven by three core beliefs that the college firmly embeds in its culture: that every student should see themselves as a STEM student; the importance of students playing in STEM; and that programs should be relevant and meaningful.
“Our connection to Deakin, CS in Schools, Downer and many other industry partnerships connects our students in STEM to the world outside of Toorak College,” Kendall says. “It is this third part that will continue to evolve as new interests and new opportunities arise.”
Kendall says the college tracks its girls’ progress and growth across many different parameters that are considered markers essential for them to thrive in the future.
“One of these is in the ability to collaborate. We have taken the fundamental skill of collaboration, taught explicitly in our Agile Learning classroom, and now track it across every subject area. This helps us see if students can generalise the skills learnt and apply them in other domains,” she says.
“It is seen through the formation of study groups, fluidity in their ability to work with new students, increased risk-taking in their responses or chosen themes, and an authentic ability to listen and take on others’ perspectives.”
By all accounts, Toorak’s approach is paying off. In the college’s most recent student survey, 90% of students said they had grown in confidence since joining the school.
Toorak College is an independent school for students from Early Learning to Year 12, with on-site boarding facilities. The school is co-educational from Early Learning until Year 4, but from Year 5 to Year 12 it takes a girls-only approach. Toorak College is dedicated to the holistic development of students, and nurtures and supports their interests, empowering them through academic and personal growth so they thrive in the future. Small class sizes, innovative programs, quality teaching and state-of-the-art resources allow students the opportunity to achieve their best in whatever field they choose.
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Deakin University is a public university in Victoria, Australia, which has its main campuses in Burwood, Geelong Waurn Ponds, Geelong Waterfront and Warrnambool, as well as an online Cloud Campus. Deakin also has learning centres in Dandenong and Werribee in Victoria. As of 2021, Deakin University is ranked among the top 1% of universities in the world. It has had the highest undergraduate student satisfaction ratings of all Victorian universities every year since 2010 and has consistently placed in the top two for highest postgraduate student satisfaction among all Victorian universities every year since 2010.
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“Having the IlluminatED project driven by a team of female academics from Deakin’s School of Information Technology and Deakin Learning Futures will provide wonderful examples and encouragement for involvement and enjoyment of STEM, with many positive outcomes for all”
Professor John Yearwood,
Deakin University
In Partnership with
The academics who spearheaded the group are Glory Lee (lecturer, computer science); Kerri Morgan (senior lecturer, computer science); Azadeh Ghari Neiat (lecturer, mobile apps computing); Laura Tubino (lecturer, curriculum design); Chathu Ranaweera (senior lecturer, computer networks); Niroshinie Fernando (senior lecturer, software engineering); Imali Dias (lecturer, Internet of things); and Elicia Lanham (senior lecturer, information technology).
“An important part of this curriculum design is that it is created for women by women,” Lee and the team tell The Educator. “The intentional inclusion of female interests and viewpoints is based on focus group discussions and workshops with teachers and female students. In the past, male-centric design has largely ignored women.”
Lee and the team point to a 2011 report by the National Library of Medicine, which showed that female drivers were 71% more likely to sustain a moderate-to-fatal injury in a car accident, yet the first female crash-test dummy was not created until 2010–11.
“At Toorak College we’re committed to doing what is right, not what is easy. Today, it is right for us to think differently about the role schools play in empowering our students to leap into opportunities that will strengthen their future”
Kristy Kendall,
Toorak College
more women in STEM education and careers. Cognisant of the critical role that mentoring plays in this respect, a small but determined cohort of female academics from the Deakin School of IT have created an interest group to provide support to one another and female students.
Industry experts
Prof. John Yearwood
Deakin University
Kristy Kendall
Toorak College
Industry experts
Kristy Kendall became the 16th principal of Toorak College at the beginning of 2016. She graduated from Monash University with a Bachelor of Arts (Psychology) and a Master’s in Education, later publishing many theoretical works in VCE psychology. She is a Harvard Principals Program graduate, has been a keynote speaker at the Global Forum for Girls’ Education, and is a master teacher and advisory board member at Edrolo as well as co-founder and chief education officer at CS in Schools. As principal of Toorak College, she encourages all students to find their passion, identify their strengths, and make the most of their Toorak College experience.
Toorak College
Kristy Kendall
Professor John Yearwood is head of the School of Information Technology at Deakin University. His background is in computer science, with particular interest in computational intelligence and decision science. His work in decision science has developed the use of argumentation structures for the modelling of knowledge and collaborative decision-making in complex domains. This has led to application in automated knowledge-based education/training platforms. Yearwood has published over 250 journal and refereed conference papers, including two books. He has previously been awarded a Canadian Association of University Teachers grant and been involved in a number of learning technology initiatives in higher education. He has an ongoing interest in encouraging and supporting the learning and enjoyment of mathematics and in seeing scientists and mathematicians take on more leadership roles in society.
Deakin University
Professor John Yearwood
Prof. John Yearwood
Deakin University
Kristy Kendall
Toorak College
Industry experts
Kristy Kendall became the 16th principal of Toorak College at the beginning of 2016. She graduated from Monash University with a Bachelor of Arts (Psychology) and a Master’s in Education, later publishing many theoretical works in VCE psychology. She is a Harvard Principals Program graduate, has been a keynote speaker at the Global Forum for Girls’ Education, and is a master teacher and advisory board member at Edrolo as well as co-founder and chief education officer at CS in Schools. As principal of Toorak College, she encourages all students to find their passion, identify their strengths, and make the most of their Toorak College experience.
Toorak College
Kristy Kendall
Professor John Yearwood is head of the School of Information Technology at Deakin University. His background is in computer science, with particular interest in computational intelligence and decision science. His work in decision science has developed the use of argumentation structures for the modelling of knowledge and collaborative decision-making in complex domains. This has led to application in automated knowledge-based education/training platforms. Yearwood has published over 250 journal and refereed conference papers, including two books. He has previously been awarded a Canadian Association of University Teachers grant and been involved in a number of learning technology initiatives in higher education. He has an ongoing interest in encouraging and supporting the learning and enjoyment of mathematics and in seeing scientists and mathematicians take on more leadership roles in society.
Deakin University
Professor John Yearwood
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Kristy Kendall
Toorak College
Professor John Yearwood
Deakin University
Professor John Yearwood is head of the School of Information Technology at Deakin University. His background is in computer science, with particular interest in computational intelligence and decision science. His work in decision science has developed the use of argumentation structures for the modelling of knowledge and collaborative decision-making in complex domains. This has led to application in automated knowledge-based education/training platforms. Yearwood has published over 250 journal and refereed conference papers, including two books. He has previously been awarded a Canadian Association of University Teachers grant and been involved in a number of learning technology initiatives in higher education. He has an ongoing interest in encouraging and supporting the learning and enjoyment of mathematics and in seeing scientists and mathematicians take on more leadership roles in society.
Deakin University
Professor John Yearwood
Kristy Kendall became the 16th principal of Toorak College at the beginning of 2016. She graduated from Monash University with a Bachelor of Arts (Psychology) and a Master’s in Education, later publishing many theoretical works in VCE psychology. She is a Harvard Principals Program graduate, has been a keynote speaker at the Global Forum for Girls’ Education, and is a master teacher and advisory board member at Edrolo as well as co-founder and chief education officer at CS in Schools. As principal of Toorak College, she encourages all students to find their passion, identify their strengths, and make the most of their Toorak College experience.
Toorak College
Kristy Kendall
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Women in STEM at a glance
Differences in interest and confidence in STEM appear early, and are particularly concerning for information technology and engineering
When considering the importance of STEM knowledge to future employment, female students consider technology as the most important and engineering as the least.
2
86%
TECHNOLOGY
75%
SCIENCE
54%
ENGINEERING
80%
MATHEMATICS
Female students are less interested and less confident in STEM subjects compared to males, particularly in the areas of engineering and technology.
1
Science
68%
61%
Technology
75%
54%
Engineering
55%
28%
Mathematics
56%
45%
Male
Female
Level of interest in STEM subjects
Science
64%
60%
Technology
73%
56%
Engineering
50%
26%
Mathematics
65%
60%
Male
Female
Confidence in getting good results
in STEM subjects
3
When asked what type of career they would like to have in the future, twice as many male students aspired to a STEM-related career than females.
41%
MALE
20%
FEMALE
Source: Australian Government Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources: Advancing Women in STEM Strategy
Source: Australian Government Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources: Advancing Women in STEM Strategy
Women in STEM at a glance
Differences in interest and confidence in STEM appear early, and are particularly concerning for information technology and engineering
When considering the importance of STEM knowledge to future employment, female students consider technology as the most important and engineering as the least.
2
86%
TECHNOLOGY
75%
SCIENCE
54%
ENGINEERING
80%
MATHEMATICS
Female students are less interested and less confident in STEM subjects compared to males, particularly in the areas of engineering and technology.
1
Science
68%
61%
Technology
75%
54%
Engineering
55%
28%
Mathematics
56%
45%
Male
Female
Level of interest in STEM subjects
Science
64%
60%
Technology
73%
56%
Engineering
50%
26%
Mathematics
65%
60%
Male
Female
Confidence in getting good results in STEM subjects
When asked what type of career they would like to have in the future, twice as many male students aspired to a STEM-related career than females.
41%
MALE
20%
FEMALE
3
Source: Australian Government Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources: Advancing Women in STEM Strategy
Women in STEM at a glance
Differences in interest and confidence in STEM appear early, and are particularly concerning for information technology and engineering
When considering the importance of STEM knowledge to future employment, female students consider technology as the most important and engineering as the least.
2
86%
TECHNOLOGY
75%
SCIENCE
54%
ENGINEERING
80%
MATHEMATICS
Female students are less interested and less confident in STEM subjects compared to males, particularly in the areas of engineering and technology.
1
Science
68%
61%
Technology
75%
54%
Engineering
55%
28%
Mathematics
56%
45%
Male
Female
Level of interest in STEM subjects
Science
64%
60%
Technology
73%
56%
Engineering
50%
26%
Mathematics
65%
60%
Male
Female
Confidence in getting good results in STEM subjects
When asked what type of career they would like to have in the future, twice as many male students aspired to a STEM-related career than females.
41%
MALE
20%
FEMALE
3
Signs of increasing female participation in STEM
• The proportion of women enrolled in STEM fields of education (undergraduate and postgraduate) at Australian universities reached 36% in 2019 (more than 81,000 women) – up from 34% in 2015 (70,000 women)
• The proportion of women working across all STEM-qualified industries increased from 24% in 2016 to 28% in 2020
• The enrolment of Australian women in STEM courses at a university level has increased by 736% since 2015
• The proportion of female key management personnel and senior managers increased from 18% in 2016 to 23% in 2020
Sources: 2022 STEM Equity Monitor;
Australian Government Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources
“This is an important marker for us in trying to assess if what we are doing is having a lasting impact. A result like that certainly makes us incredibly proud of the way our programs are helping them develop one of the most important personal qualities they can develop,” Kendall says.
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